For Donald Trump the whole rigged systems thing was all just a talking point. But it was one that touched a nerve. Our criminal justice system is in fact rigged against the majority of those who are swept up in it.

While members of the left have traditionally been the ones speaking out against over-incarceration, there is a growing consensus among modern conservatives that current use of jails -- especially with regards to pretrial practices -- is at odds with their core principles: limited government and individual liberty.

The two women expected their case to go to trial. They planned to show the court their receipt for the soup and explain to the judge that Ms. Ellis is a vegan and never eats meat of any kind, much less a hot dog. But when their case came up, they were told there was not going to be a trial.

The majority of jurisdictions in the U.S. rely on bond schedules, which specifies monetary amounts accused persons must pay to be released pretrial, based on the charges they face. Many defendants on low-level charges who cannot afford bail plead guilty through negotiations before trial, solely in order to be released from jail.

We expect our criminal justice system to be fair and effective. It's part of our national DNA to want equal treatment and to get the job done. But in pretrial justice -- the time between when a person is arrested and when the charges are resolved -- the basic principles we hold dear are too often undermined by our use of cash bail.

Pretrial detention is a strong predictor of whether a defendant will be sentenced to prison at the conclusion of the criminal case. Defendants who cannot afford bail and spend months in jail can suffer job loss, education disruption, the loss of housing, and many other dire collateral consequences.